


Don't cry

by JadeNightTheWriter



Category: Keeper of the Lost Cities Series - Shannon Messenger
Genre: (?), Angst, Character Study, Day 5: Rain/Tears, Drabble, Gen, Kam Week, Kam Week 2020, One Word Prompts, POV Alternating, Technically this isn't kam, but shh, tbh that prompt is very angst-inspiring, yes i'm back at it with the angst folks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-04
Updated: 2020-12-04
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:40:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 264
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27876994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JadeNightTheWriter/pseuds/JadeNightTheWriter
Summary: Tam doesn’t cry. Neither does Keefe. But it doesn’t mean they’re not hurting.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 15





	Don't cry

**Author's Note:**

> Suffer with me :)

Tam doesn’t cry. 

When Linh was banished, he didn’t cry. He cut his neat bags so they hung in jagged strands, dipped them in silver, and threw his home crystal at the man he refused to call ‘father’. Then he and Linh gathered their bags and left. Later, Tam discovered a burn on his shoulder from the liquid metal. It hurt, but he didn’t cry.

Every night they’d set up their little camp, and Linh would sing softly and sometimes Tam would join in, as they learned to sleep on the ground and after exhausting days at Exilium. Sometimes Linh would cry, because she had enough strength to let herself hope. Tam didn’t, and so he held her close, staying silent. 

Tam doesn’t cry. But that doesn’t make it hurt any less. 

Keefe doesn’t cry.

He can’t, because that’s just one more change his parents will seize to hurt him. They already make his life miserable, so why bother? The first time he got detention he’d laughed at them, because what else was he supposed to do? Afterwards, he practiced until he could smile and laugh whenever they yelled at him. It was fine. He was fine.

When Elwin treated his bruises and various injuries, Keefe didn’t cry. Not when the disinfectant stung, not when Elwin worried about him and actually _cared_ , not when he let Keefe stay in the Healing Center to skip class. He didn’t cry, because he’d spent so long telling himself not to that he didn’t know if he could anymore. 

Keefe doesn’t cry, but that doesn’t lessen the pain. 

**Author's Note:**

> Sfaskdfj this was so short I originally was going to post it with the other drabble, but they're not connected so :/ (I should really just make a kotlc misc. dump)


End file.
